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Let's Keep it Dry For a SecondLicensed card companies each year have to pay a royalty to sports leagues (NBA, MLB, NFL, NHL) and/or a players association. Royalty payments to the league are in the 10%-20% range off sales. A players association license varies, but it's lower than what the league charges. You can't make fully licensed cards without the dual license.

For baseball, the largest market, Topps has exclusive rights in the trading card category from MLB Properties and has the companion MLB Players Association license. Competitor Panini America also has a license with the MLBPA. Because Panini doesn't have the MLB Properties license, they can't use MLB logos and team names on their cards. They can show images of players but MLB licensed logos have to be 'airbrushed' out on player jerseys and hats. Companies like Topps and Panini's entire business revolves around having a license from a sports league or players association. Imagine the EA Sports "Madden" video game without the real players or NFL teams. Think they would sell many games?

Biased Truth?MLB doesn't need trading cards to rake in money, at all, period, end of story. It sounds funny to even write that. Much of MLB's revenues are tied to television rights and soft goods. For licensed trading cards across all sports, business has slowed tremendously since the glory days of the 1990's. What was a billion dollar business, sales have shrunk by a huge margin. In 2012, CBS employee Armen Keteyian wrote a story and produced a video that struck a nerve with many involved in the industry. The crux of the piece was that the good years were long gone. Keteyian spoke with dealers, an author, Mr. Mint and others in his video. Each person echoed the sentiment that the industry was fading.

In response to the CBS story, Panini posted on their blog saying: "Frankly, the piece was light on investigation and heavy on sources seemingly hand picked to validate a preconceived conclusion: The collectibles hobby is dying." Panini claimed the industry was far from dead and cited examples. One being this new HRX video technology. Here is Panini's justification:

"Oh, and then there was the report last summer from FOX News on Panini America’s pioneering HRX Video Trading Cards. Both the CW 33 and FOX News reports would seem to indicate an industry that is not dying at all but transforming for a new generation."

Funny thing is, Panini didn't pioneer the technology, they just paid a vendor for it. I recently put in a phone call to the company who made the HRX video cards for Panini. The employee said they no longer had a relationship with Panini, but he asked if I wanted my own custom HRX card. I hear crickets coming from the Dallas, TX area... or maybe they are busy scanning QR Codes.

Another point Panini made in response to Keteyian was: "The late 1980s/early 1990s was the boom time with mass produced product that held no value. The category is now more refined and cards hold secondary market values. Cards sell for big money."

I guess what Panini failed to mention were that packs in the 1980s and early 1990's were sold for less than a dollar during that time. Boxes of cards produced today have wholesale prices in the hundreds, even thousands of dollars. The cards should hold their value if you increase the price 1000%. C'mon guys.

Each year the MLBPA files a LM-2 with the Department of Labor, which basically outlines all the royalty payments they receive. The final numbers for 2013 are due out in April 2014 and were not available the time this was originally written.

The single biggest revenue stream disclosed in the filing for the MLBPA is the video game segment. Annually, Take Two Interactive's MLB 2K franchise is a bigger revenue winner for the MLBPA than the entire trading card category. In 2011 TTWO paid the MLBPA $15.4 million, and add MLB The Show (Sony's) payment of $3.52 million and you get $18.92 million. Almost double what Topps paid in 2011; keep in mind it was Topps' best year from the numbers I have.

The MLB 2K game is popular, but no where near as hot as other video game titles such as Grand Theft Auto, Madden or Call of Duty. I wonder how many people in the sports card industry realize a 10th tier video game is a bigger money winner for the MLBPA than the totality of every baseball set Topps makes during an entire year.

Let's take a look at the royalty payments made by sports card companies to the MLBPA from 2005-2012. The figures are in millions. The MLBPA gets a % of every sale using MLB players. So, in effect, you can kind of tell the total revenue a particular category generated for the PA.

Also consider this revenue gets split up to all the members of the players association. The director of the MLBPA makes over $1 million a year. At the end of the day, the cards are pennies in the pocket considering the salaries some players are able to earn.

Year

Topps

Upper Deck

Donruss

Fleer

Total

2012

$9.6M

-

-

-

$9.6M

2011

$10.68M

-

-

-

$10.68

2010

$5.77M

$6.57M

-

-

$12.34M

2009

$9.4M

$8.1M

-

-

$17.5M

2008

$9M*

$10.3M

-

-

$19.3M

2007

$10.57

$10.41M

-

-

$20.98M

2006

$7.75M

$10.06M

-

-

$17.81

2005

$4M

$5.7M

$5.5M

$1M

$16.2M

*In addition to the $9M payment, Topps owed the MLBPA $8 million. It's believed the filing of the LM-2 was done prior to Topps' scheduled payment to the PA.

If you're in the Topps camp you can spin the numbers in your favor. In 2005, Topps lagged behind Donruss and Upper Deck in MLB card sales. Just six years later, they are the only ones left standing with a MLB Properties license. If for some reason you only care about Topps and loathe every other card maker, the numbers are a thing of beauty. Private equity ownership Madison Dearborn Partners successfully eliminated any and all serious competition. Even before MDP bought Topps in 2007, the then current Topps management correctly predicted the fall of Upper Deck during a quarterly conference call with investors. It was almost like Babe Ruth calling his shot.

Put a blindfold over the card company names, and just look at the total payment to the MLBPA. It shows a less glorious story. Since 2007, the total royalty payments to the MLPA have declined, and fast. In addition to the falling revenues, collectors of cards have less choices starting in 2006.

Fleer was the first to go when they ceased operations in 2005. To show you how fast these card companies can fold up shop take a look at this timeline for Fleer. Note how quick they went broke.

May 31, 2005 - both Fleer/Skybox International, LP and Fleer Collectibles, LLC has ceased all operations. The assets of both companies have been assigned to Warren J. Martin Jr., an attorney with Porzio, Bromberg & Newman, P.C. in Morristown, NJ. Martin specializes in bankruptcy and insolvency matters.

Donruss lost their MLB license starting in 2006, and hung around long enough to sucker Panini into purchasing them in 2009. Would Donruss have gone broke? Probably. Can I prove that? Nope. The fact that the MLB didn't renew with Donruss should speak volumes. It also tells you all you need to know about the sports licensing game. A card company needs the license from the league WAY more than the league needs the card company. I mean it's laughable. The league can cut you off at any moment. That should be obvious. Wake up. These card companies are small fish and I treat them as such. They can be replaced or eliminated at any time.

The Upper Deck story is far more complicated and somewhat sad. Glory days at the now vacant 246,668 sq/ft company headquarters were when Richard McWilliam (October 20, 1953 – January 5, 2013) would drive his Bentley on the sidewalks of the property. Upper Deck was ballin'. Somewhere along the way Upper Deck, and certainly McWilliam lost their juice. Former employees will recount tales of days they were worried their paycheck wouldn't show up on time. Upper Deck missed scheduled payments to various leagues including Major League Baseball. This all led to some ugly legal battles that have left Upper Deck in ruins. The company will probably go broke or get purchased in a similar way as Donruss. Just give it some time, it could go at any moment.

The Bad Economy

A favorite excuse of card company execs is to blame slacking sales on the Housing/Stock Market/Fake Rich crash of 2008. It's such a cop out. I remember getting on ShareBuilder during the 2008 stock market crash and it was like a 75% off sale at Blowout Cards. The market has rebounded to record highs, and when I go to buy stocks now, I wonder where the heck my coupon code is.

Ok, so you say the stock market rebounding is a poor example. Regular Joe Blows don't have the money anymore to buy sports cards. I can see that. Ok, why haven't the card companies done anything about it? Why are box prices continuing to soar in price? Whose fault is that? I don't run Topps or Panini. I can't change their business. That's their role. If they are pricing out a bunch of potential collectors, maybe they should change the business and configure products differently. Or maybe they are just trying to hit minimum sales targets set forth by the league?

So you say it's hard to find these cards in stores? Whose fault is that? Hey Topps, Panini. Pick up the phone and make some calls. That's what you do when you have a product to sell. Hustle. Hobby shops don't want to stock your product? Call and schmooze them. There are lot's of regular sports stores, about 5 of them in my local mall. Call them and see if they want to buy some product to put on the counter. With all the other expensive crap these stores have, a pack of Panini Prizm for $5 appears cheap.

Funny thing is. I had a sports card store from 2006-2008. Wow. Talk about bad timing. Epic bad timing. I owe close to $20,000 on a loan I still pay for. In February 2013 I wrote an article on the top 5 reasons I failed at the business. I didn't blame the economy, I looked in the mirror. That's what you do when you fail. Don't make excuses. There are card stores still open today that weathered the 2008 crisis. Why couldn't I? I failed, it's okay to admit that and learn from it.

The irony is that I never made money in the sports card game until after the 2008 economic downturn. Always a net loser before 2009. So the bad economy thing, just doesn't resonate with me. If your business model sucks, change it or go broke. Real simple.

Go Ahead, Make an Excuse Why Not

Why don't these card companies authenticate their own cards? No I'm serious, like PSA & BGS would but don't even grade them. Charge some money, make a margin. I can imagine people buying a box, then sending the cards to Topps to "authenticate" them. Such a sick greedy business, I love it. Easy sucker money. Look how easy the grading money has been for PSA & BGS. Collectors Universe (PSA) does quarterly conference calls about raking in money from coin and card grading. Why do card companies let all the good business models go to other outlets they have no piece of?

Topps made failed attempts at running their own marketplace: The Pit and eTopps. Seems like fan boys would be slurping at the opportunity to list their cards on the "Official Site to Sell Topps Cards". There are way more people who want to sell cards than buy them. Why don't you grab some of that money? COMC has, and shoot, eBay sure has. I find it funny that the #1 place to buy and sell sports cards, eBay, has absolutely no ties or obligations to the industry. I look at it like this, these card companies need to find a way to continue to get revenue off sets they've produced long ago. eBay and COMC sure have proven a business model, I guess Topps and Panini will just let them take all the money.

Conclusion

Topps: Owned by private equity. When is the last time you've heard a statement from ownership? Do they have a CEO? Research a little bit what private equity does when they buy a company. Also, look into the few years at Topps before the 2007 sale to MDP. The plan all along was to eliminate competition, seek exclusive licenses and run a lean business. These guys don't care what you get out of your packs. If they did why would you have to wait years for redemption cards to be exchanged? Kids in their 20's are product developers on the famous Bowman brand. How much do the cards really matter to the ownership at Topps? If you like new baseball cards, you're forced to buy Topps and that's just the way they like it.

Panini: Who knows what will happen here. Could they go broke like Upper Deck and Fleer did? Yeah, that's probably the way I would lean. What are they doing different? I almost feel like they wish they had the culture and buzz Upper Deck had during the glory years. Sad thing is, Panini is just 20 years too late.

Upper Deck: When it gets to the point where employees are worried they won't get paid..... well. That does hit a soft spot. Hopefully they are able to sell the assets they still have before it gets to be game over.

Is the Industry Dying: I'm probably not the best guy to ask. The business aspect of the hobby gets my juices flowing, not sparkles in Series 1. I'd rather read through the old Fleer bankruptcy files then open a pack of cards. I don't think the business of making cards like Topps and Panini is a good model. Real bad actually. They not only have to get a license (where the card company is the *****), but they then have to get separate autograph deals with players, secure game/event used items. Shoot, they don't even print and manufacture the cards themselves. That's all outsourced. Have fun with that business.

That doesn't mean it's all bad. Over the years billions of cards have been printed and there are people who want them. If you have Michael Olowokandi autographs, then you can probably find me. It's the accessory businesses where you can find success and there are plenty of examples.

"Service" type businesses have proven to be a good way to connect collectors and keep the industry alive, primarily online. A platform to sell cards like COMC. A website or forum where information is shared or discussed. BGS and PSA have got to be making gravy train type money. I shouldn't have to tell you how much money eBay and PayPal make servicing sports card buyers and sellers.

While the service industry can thrive, the retail end can be brutal. People ask me quite often if they should open a sports card store. I reply: are you crazy? I actually think most buying and re-selling models in the sports card world are bad ideas at the moment. Things would have to dramatically change for me to sign off on them. Most are real low margin, lots of work. No barrier to entry. Anyone can open a store. Anyone can group break. Anyone can rip and flip. The odds of you making real money is slim. Good luck.

This thing isn't dead. There are dead business models but you better not say anything about it.

I was reading an article on a completely different business the other day, that described a 'cigar butt' type business. Basically a cigar butt business has been on a steady decline for many years - but still has one last puff of smoke left in it that can keep it alive for a little while longer, before burning out for good.

Sounds like an industry you know???

Sports trading cards aren't quite down to the cigars wrapper, but it's getting close. A while back CBS posted a piece that discussed how kids were long gone from the hobby - and that the hobby will 'die out with the (old) collectors' who are still around today.

Painini's reaction was immediate denial and understandably most collectors felt the same way. In the midst of 'hot' or 'double' rookie class years, things might seem brighter than they appear.

Also, I've never been to a collector coin show or a gun show. But I'd bet a Michael Carter-Williams RC it's all old men at those shows too.

I'm guessing those industries think we'll all get into guns & money as we get older.

They've been right for hundreds of years, so who's to argue with that logic?

So industries can survive, even if only old people are collecting the stuff ... but the card companies haven't evolved over the years to adjust to the times. What exactly does Topps & Panini do differently than the last card company that went broke?

Not much right?

The CBS piece I link to earlier blames, in part, video games for kids leaving the hobby. Appears now that iconic video game maker Nintendo is now realizing their business model is stuck in the 1990's too.

I must be getting old. Nintendo killed sports cards ... now Nintendo is dead?

The card companies business model has not changed since Super Mario 1 came out. And neither has Nintendo's. Sure the consoles, games and sports cards look a little flashier & cost more - but under the hood of Topps, Panini & Nintendo you have the same tired motor they were running in the 1990's.

One strategy I think would be effective for anyone in this industry to do - is to start being honest with your customers!

Often speaking up in the sports card world means you don't get free boxes, you're not welcomed to things like the Industry Summit and you don't rub elbows with the employees of the 'little guys' that run these sports card manufactures.

But look what Dominoes Pizza did a few years ago. They admitted their pizza sucked - and have embraced trying to make it better since then. The company embraced declining sales & quality - then used it to fuel their growth in the years ahead.

These sports card idiots have it all wrong!

When the prevailing perception of your product is that it sucks and could get a lot better - the best thing to do is embrace that fact!

Wide-eyed kids don't collect these cards anymore. Your consumers are older and have bills/responsibilities they didn't have when they were 10 years old. On top of that consumers are more educated & informed these days about the products they buy. They appreciate honesty. When Dominoes came forward and admitted something I've known about their product for years - it completely transformed how I thought of that company & I never tried their new pizza!

The elephant in the room of many sports card circles is that it's fading away. But when someone acknowledges that fact - they are belittled by a few hundred people and companies who still have the same practices they did 20 years ago. Your un-invited to industry events and certainly no one will send you something for free.

The very few industry events I've attended - even fewer people in this business are willing to candidly talk about the future of this business. Most are in denial. That goes for card companies, card shop owners, bloggers, group breakers and conference operators. This hobby is fading away in part because of that denial, and the unwillingness to listen to anyone that challenges decade old business practices that by all accounts aren't generating massive profits for anyone in the business.

Forgive me for wanting to help you guys make more money. Instead everyone is so focused on keeping their existing piece of the shrinking pie - they can't see 4 or 5 years in front of them. Anyone who wants to address that question is treated like they don't know what they are talking about.

Dominoes will tell you its profitable to listen to your customers ... even go as far as to put their negative comments in your own TV commercials. People in the sports card business could learn from that.

12:00-3:30 PM – Opening business session, including "Retailer Idea Exchange". First look at the 2014 sport card & collectible survey results. Everyone in the sports card industry had such a bad year last year, but we will find a way to make sure the industry butt kissers put a positive spin on things.

11:00-12:30 PM -- SOLUTION SESSIONS: Breakout sessions targeting industry growth opportunities. While there really aren't any growth opportunities out there, we will tell you how to break your back for 70 hours a week to make barely above minimum wage.

Football: 3:30 PM-5 PM - When there are good NFL rookies, buy up. When the rookie class sucks, like 2013, we'll keep cranking out product! Topps and Panini can afford a bad year. Who cares if card shop owners and group breakers can't?

Basketball: 3:30 PM-5 PM - Panini blows off tons of money each year producing NBA basketball cards. But let's come up with some ideas how you can lose money too!

At some point Panini will give away Black Boxes and everyone will be joyous for a second.

Wednesday- March 19, 2014

Everyone leaves on Tuesday night or this morning. Not much to do this day.

Corporate Partners

Panini America - Their products are so horrible but they make up for it by lavishing dealers with gifts and Black Boxes at the Summit. Panini could end up broke in five years (like every other card company except Topps) but at least they give a damn about you!

Beckett Media - Book prices are out of date, the marketplace is clunky, but old men still flock daily!

Upper Deck - When you go from the top of the sports card game......to the bottom, it's hard to stay relevant. They are hanging on by a string hoping for a buyer.

Wholesale Distributors - They rent a 0.35/cents sq ft warehouse and set up a laptop. Card companies love them because distributors wipe all the inventory off their books. Sluuuuurp!

The Pit - One time I made $50 in a month "flipping" cards on The Pit. That was like ten years ago. They were once owned by Topps and called every month to check in. No. For real.

Topps - The plan to get an exclusive MLB license was hatched even before Topps was sold in 2007. I guess none of the ones complaining about such exclusive paid any attention back then. How's that gum taste!

The Las Vegas Industry Summit had a long history of gathering sports card professionals together for an annual conference. Roughly 300-400 people attend, consisting of a collection of sports card shop owners, card company employees, and a mixture of others trying to make some money in the sports card game. Corporate sponsors pay $3,195-5,000+ for "booths" and presentations where they can try and promote their business to those attending. This is not a "card show" like the NSCC. The Industry Summit is a place to go if you have a business venture and are trying to gain contacts or customers.

Sports Card Radio Gets the BootThe last three years I've been to the Las Vegas Summit. The tone of the Summit is in large part tailored to brick and mortar store owners. That's not really my game. I failed at running a sports store. I don't go to the Summit in hopes of making contacts to grow any type of sports card business I have now. In all honesty, sports cards is a very small business where I only see a few people and companies who can make real money. By real money I mean millions. Aside from the few "real ballers" there are thousands of people in the sports card game trying to scratch out about $28,000 or less a year. I'm not going to break my back in the sports card game for that kind of money.

So for me, it's fun to go to the Summit and post tweets on Twitter with updates about what is going on. Twitter is a niche thing in the sports card world. I wouldn't say a lot of "collectors" are on there. The sports card community on Twitter is filled with people usually trying to promote/sell something. Actually, it's the perfect demographic for the Summit, as you can probably count on one hand how many "true collectors" attend the event in Vegas. Twitter isn't really my game either. Aside from a few key times of the year, I don't tweet that much. It actually sounds stupid to even be writing about how much I tweet. For me, there are easier ways to monetize, and get traffic to content I create on the web......and I'm not limited to 140 characters.

One thing to keep in mind, card company employees and the Summit event organizers are very wrapped up into Twitter. Some of these guys must check their phone 150 times a day. It's a key place for Topps, Panini, Group Breakers, and anyone else trying to scratch out a living to promote their business. For me, it's a perfect place to blast off on them. When collectors are having issues with customer service and redemptions, Twitter is the best place to go and let Topps know about it.

It's probably hard to believe, I know, but people email Sports Card Radio everyday. Usually they want to know about a specific set or what something is worth. The last couple years a lot of emails have been about customer service issues, mostly pertaining to Topps. In 2013 I looked at the Summit as an opportunity to tee off on sports card company employees on Twitter and let them know their customers weren't happy. Not everything I posted was negative, but I did have some Nick Young moments and got some shots up. Because of those Twitter posts from last year, I was told I would not be able to attend in 2014 shortly after registering this year. If I was 2014 Las Vegas Industry Summit organizer Kevin Isaacson I wouldn't have let me attend either! It's one of the few smart things I've seen him do as Summit organizer.

Censored HobbyThe "media" that covers the hobby is weak and soft. Sports cards in general have plummeted in popularity since the mid-1990's, yet you rarely see discussion about how and why that happened. And more importantly, why it continues to be a weak business today. Hobby "media" tends to ignore the declining business and will generally pimp and promote anything that comes out of the corporate offices of Panini, Topps and Upper Deck. You can see why the hobby media would steer in that direction. If you want to pick up a check at the end of the week, you better not make anyone at Topps or Panini upset with your news organization. If it means putting food on your table, by all means, pimp every set like it's as great as 1952 Topps.

Summit organizers limiting who can attend their event will also further the soft approach to covering sports cards. If you ever want to attend, or plan to attend the Vegas gig, you better not be barking on Twitter. Trust me! Company employees and Summit organizers could care less about cut and pasted articles on a website. They don't care about your radio show or podcast. I've spent countless hours promoting crappy sets of cards. I've spent waaaaaaay more hours helping to promote crappy sets of cards than I can even count. I'm also not a fool. These card companies don't make collectible cards. They come out with way too many products. Only a few sets each year are any good. There are very few people with any passion in this industry. Most are just trying to pick up that meager check each week. Shame on me for wanting the industry to shoot for higher aspirations.

And oh - some of you "media members" are real jerks to some decent collectors who email you. Why don't you light up a card company for coming out with their 26th set during a month? Why are you dogging a collector? Damn that pisses me off.

Kevin IsaacsonIsaacson pulled me out of an Amazon presentation to discuss "my tweets on Twitter" during the 2013 Summit. He estimated that I had 750 tweets during the four day event. I was impressed he took the time to count, that couldn't have been easy. He did have an issue with a few of the things I had posted, mainly one that said he was responsible for "double selling" a spot in a group break he was collecting payments for. The double selling created confusion and upset a store owner who had never been involved in a group break before.

I told Isaacson that he shouldn't be so concerned about my posts on Twitter. I said "I'm going to go home and watch baseball, I could care less about this (expletive)." His response "Me too!" The Las Vegas Industry Sports Card Summit is a money making venture for Isaacson. He has very little other dealings in the sports card industry.

I remember a conversation I had with him a couple years ago, kind of before the whole "group breaking" boom. I told him that if I had a group breaking business I would be worried that Blowout Cards and DA Card World would start doing breaks and that could squeeze the already tight margins. Card shop owners already know all about this game. Collectors love Blowout Cards and DA Card World. I've yet to find a card shop owner with anything nice to say about them. Isaacson laughed me off the phone at the notion Blowout and DA would conduct group breaks saying they were strictly a pack and ship business (isn't that what group breaking is, but just more work involved?). Currently Blowout and DA Card World are selling group break spots. I could go on with other examples about Isaacson, but the key thing to know about him is that he actually knows very little about the sports card industry. When the 2014 Las Vegas Sports Card Summit is over, he's going to go home and watch baseball too.

Mark Sapir's Hands Were Shaking One of Isaacson's BFF is former Topps employee Mark Sapir. I always found that Sapir didn't seem to have a care in the world about collectors when he worked at Topps. The customer service problems they were having while he was employed, he would brush off, saying that wasn't his department.

During a Topps presentation at the 2013 Summit, I went on Twitter and voiced my displeasure about the way Topps was handling some things. It seemed like a good time. The funny thing was, Sapir, who was in charge of the Topps Twitter account at the time, was like 20 feet away from me and I could see him constantly scrolling through his phone to check. He looked like a clown. He could care less that 200 card shop owners were in the room to hear what Topps had to say. All Sapir cared about was what I was saying on Twitter. Idiot.

After the presentation, I was gathering up my stuff when Sapir approached me. The first words out of his mouth were "What's your deal? You don't want to have some kind of partnership? It's like that?" His hands were shaking. On my life, his hands were shaking. I laughed. "I have no interest in any kind of partnership. My brother and I built a sports card website without any help from anyone in this room. I don't give a (expletive) about anybody in this room."

He was stunned. How could some wannabe blogger tell him that? Isn't that a sports card webmasters dream to have a Topps employee approach you, with hands shaking, asking for your help? He turned his back to walk away several times, as I kept telling him I had no desire for any kind of "deal". Yet he kept turning around to try and soften me up. Sapir wanted to provide me with things like, Topps checklists and information to put on my website. I couldn't figure out what was in it for me, since I'd spent the last few years putting up that crap without any kind of help from him (not to mention I've never been cut a check that says Topps on it). A few months prior he offered me a similar "deal". The only caveat being, and this is his quote: "If I ever see you say anything negative about this company (Topps), especially on Twitter, I'll cut you off for good."

Needless to say, I never took any kind of "deal" from Sapir and Topps. Partnerships are not my game. If you own a website, and someone wants to partner with you, run away as fast as you can unless they are holding a fist full of cash. Sapir left Topps just weeks after the 2013 Vegas Summit. Today he spends his time on Twitter doing more ranting and raving than I do. A lot of his tweets center around how weak a business the sports card industry is today. Something that has been painfully obvious for many years now. It's a shame while he was at Topps he never did anything about it.

Why did I write this even if I can't go and am going to watch baseball?

I care about the sports card industry because I've spent my entire life involved in the business in someway. When I was in 7th grade I got to work at a card shop every weekend. That was freaking sweet. My friends at school couldn't believe it. When Kobe Bryant scored 81 points in a game in 2006, I had cases of 1996/97 Finest Basketball, featuring his rookie card, stacked to the ceiling. I made so much money that day on eBay. My brother and I went flat broke running a sports store from 2006-2008. After a rough day at the store, where I'd be there and literally sell nothing, I would walk home with tears in my eyes. You can't cry if you don't care.

Running a brick and mortar store isn't my game. Twitter isn't my game. Being soft, in a stone dead dying industry, just to collect a check isn't my game. Those interested in the 2014 Las Vegas Sports Card Industry Summit should still go if they want to. It wouldn't surprise me though, if in the future, there are more choices when it comes to conferences like the one in Vegas. If the current Summit continues to be more selective with who can attend, look for someone who has more smarts about the industry than Isaacson to host their own. I would certainly be willing to provide help, but it's not like anyone with intelligence would need my assistance. Someone told me Isaacson made $50,000 organizing the Summit one year. Sounds like a decent business model. Sounds like less work than group breaking. Give it a shot if you feel up to it. Maybe those last few sentences were why I wrote this....

I get the sense that people like Isaacson think at some point I'll go away and everyone can just keep collecting a check in peace. Hey guys! I've been at this since I was in 2nd grade. I'm not going anywhere. The industry keeps shrinking it seems each year, but I'll stick around. I'll just keep doing my thing. Maybe I'll have an ace up my sleeve. If I do, I certainly won't have to ask for anyone's help.